Kazuki Kimura (木村 一基, Kimura Kazuki, born June 23, 1973) is a Japanese professional shogi player ranked 9-dan. He is a former Ōi title holder. He is also the oldest player to win a major title for the first time.
| Kazuki Kimura | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 木村一基 |
| Born | June 23, 1973 |
| Hometown | Yotsukaidō |
| Career | |
| Achieved professional status | April 1, 1997 (aged 23) |
| Badge Number | 222 |
| Rank | 9-dan |
| Teacher | Yūji Sase (Honorary 9-dan) |
| Major titles won | 1 |
| Tournaments won | 2 |
| Meijin class | B2 |
| Ryūō class | 1 |
| Notable students | Satoshi Takano |
| Websites | |
| JSA profile page | |
Early life, amateur shogi and apprenticeship
Kimura was born in Yotsukaidō, Chiba Prefecture on June 23, 1973.[1] He learned how to play shogi at a friend's house when he was in kindergarten, and started regularly going to a local shogi club when he was a second-grade elementary school student.[2]
Kimura first met his future mentor shogi professional Yūji Sase when the two played a 2-piece handicap game. Kimura soon began taking lessons from Sase at his house, where he occasionally played practice games against Hiroe Nakai, who was another one of Sase's students.[2] In 1985, he advanced to the quarterfinals of the 10th Elementary Student Meijin Tournament as sixth-grade elementary school student, and later that same year entered the Japan Shogi Association's apprentice school under the guidance of Sase.[2][3]
At first, Kimura progressed fairly quickly and was promoted to the rank of 3-dan in the fall of 1990 when he was an eleventh-grade high school student, but it took more than six years before he was able to obtain professional status and the rank of 4-dan in April 1997.[2][3]
Shogi professional
Kimura became the 52nd shogi professional to reach 600 career wins on December 21, 2017.[4]
In June 2019, Kimura defeated Yoshiharu Habu to earn the right to challenge Masayuki Toyoshima for the 60th Ōi title.[5] In the title match against Toyoshima, Kimura lost the first two games before coming back to tie the score at two wins apiece. Toyoshima won Game 5 and needed just one more win to defend his title; Kimura, however, won the last two games to win the match 4 games to 3. The victory not only gave Kimura his first major title, but it also made him the oldest first time winner of a major title at the age of 46 years and 3 months, breaking the record of 37 years and 6 months set by Michio Ariyoshi in 1973.[6]
In June–August 2020, Kimura was unable to defend his Ōi title against Sōta Fujii, losing the 61st Ōi title match 4 games to none.[7][8]
In September–October 2021, Kimura challenged Takuya Nagase for the 69th Ōza title, but lost the match 3 games to 1.[9]
Promotion history
The promotion history for Kimura is as follows:[10]
- 6-kyū: 1985
- 1-dan: 1988
- 4-dan: April 1, 1997
- 5-dan: April 1, 1999
- 6-dan: December 17, 2001
- 7-dan: April 1, 2003
- 8-dan: April 1, 2007
- 9-dan: June 26, 2017
Titles and other championships
Kimura has appeared in a major title match nine times, and has won one title;[11] he has also won two non-major-title championships during his career.[12]
Awards and honors
Kimura has received a number of Japan Shogi Association Annual Shogi Awards throughout his career. He won the ""Best New Player" award for 1997–1998; the "Best Winning Percentage" award for 1998–1999; the "Best Winning Percentage", "Most Games Won" and "Most games Played" awards for 2000–2001; the "Fighting-spirit" award for 2008–2009; and, the “Special Award” for 2019.[13][14]
Year-end prize money and game fee ranking
Kimura has finished in the "Top 10" of the JSA's year-end prize money and game fee rankings nine times since turning professional.
| Year | Amount | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | ¥22,860,000 | 8th[15] |
| 2007 | ¥23,840,000 | 8th[16] |
| 2008 | ¥29,580,000 | 6th[17] |
| 2009 | ¥29,420,000 | 5th[18] |
| 2011 | ¥20,520,000 | 7th[19] |
| 2014 | ¥16,340,000 | 10th[20] |
| 2019 | ¥32,090,000 | 7th[21] |
| 2020 | \23,380,000 | 8th[22] |
| 2021 | \22,450,000 | 7th[23][24] |
- Note: All amounts are given in Japanese yen and include prize money and fees earned from official tournaments and games held from January 1 to December 31.